Sony DSLR-A580 vs Nikon D800

Nikon D800 advantages over Sony DSLR-A580

• Lens selection
  Excellent vs Good
  Better lens selection gives you more options
• Larger sensor
  35mm vs APS-C
  More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
• Fast startup
  ~0.30 vs 0.8 sec
  Faster startup lets you catch the moment
• Higher effective ISO

  Higher effective ISO

  Maximum effective ISO is an estimate of the highest sensitivity at which a camera can capture excellent quality photos.

  Cameras with higher effective ISO will be better choices for indoor photography, night shooting, and indoor sports photography, especially if you intend to make large prints.

  You can learn more at our glossary entry.

  Maximum effective ISO test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  D800 test data on DxO Mark DSLR-A580 test data on DxO Mark
  2,853 vs 1,123 iso
  Take photos in low light with less noise
• Top deck display
  Yes vs No
  Check settings with a screen on top of the camera
• External Mic Jack
  Jack vs No jack
  Improved sound fidelity when shooting video
• More cross-type AF points
  15 vs 3
  Cross-type AF points improve autofocus performance
• Higher max flash sync
  1/250 vs 1/160 sec
  Reduce the effect of ambient light in flash shots
• Pentaprism viewfinder
  Pentaprism vs Pentamirror
  Much better viewfinder picture fidelity
• Shoots 24p video
  Yes vs No
  Gives your movies a big-screen feel
• Shoots 1080p video
  Yes vs No
  You'll want this if you shoot video
• Less shutter lag
  0.21 vs 0.29 sec
  Focus and take a photo quickly (wide angle)
• More viewfinder magnification
  0.70x vs 0.53x
  Get a bigger view of the scene through the eye-level viewfinder
• More pixels
  36.3 vs 16.2 megapixels
  Higher resolution photos
• Shoots 60p video
  Yes vs No
  A faster framerate can give you more editing options
• Dual card slots
  Yes vs No
  Gives you more storage flexibility
• More AF points
  51 vs 15
  More AF points improve autofocus
• Headphone jack
  Yes vs No
  Monitor audio recording while you shoot video
• Bigger JPEG buffer
  54 vs 32 shots
  Take more JPEG shots before waiting (burst mode)
• Faster shutter
  1/8000 vs 1/4000 sec
  Shoot wide open in bright light